


and we drown in our sins

by khrysallis



Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Alternate Universe - MAMA (Music Video), Angst, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-02-13
Updated: 2016-02-13
Packaged: 2018-05-20 03:19:17
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 20,434
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5990143
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/khrysallis/pseuds/khrysallis
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>They didn't come to this world as saviors; they came to take over it.</p>
            </blockquote>





	and we drown in our sins

**Author's Note:**

> **warnings:** dark!exo, emotional manipulation, multiple character deaths (both minor and major).
> 
>  
> 
>  **a/n:** Something I was meant to submit for exoments, but got stuck with a major writer's block which made me drop out midway, lol. Finally managed to complete this in the end, but please be forewarned that this is not beta-ed. Enjoy!

 

Everything in the universe is created with darkness and light in a precarious balance;  
Be vigilant! Tap not into the dark, for it spells the beginning of the end.

_\- Unknown inscription, Planet EXO_

 

 

 

 

 

It's close to midnight when a swirling vortex opens up in the ground – it's in the middle of a once-lush meadow, but now reduced to nothing but a scorched piece of land – as though swallowing it whole. The still night air is suddenly supercharged with an immense amount of energy, something yet unseen in this world, and wisps of dark smoke rises from the vortex, its colour much darker than the murky, acidic night sky.

The tendrils curl sleepily in the air, before gradually merging together to form a huge dome, and mere moments later, a group of twelve dressed in ancient robes emerges from it, several of them stretching their muscles and cracking their joints, as though having just travelled a great distance in a cramped space. The one who's most unaffected by it – a man with distressingly beautiful facial features, much too ethereal to the eyes of a normal human – lowers the hood of his robe and takes a step further from the group, sticking his nose into the air and sniffing once, his expressions promptly contorting into one of disgust when his senses register the smell and decides it to be offensive.

"Rotten," he says simply, with a calmness that betrays his inner state of mind. It's a thought that seems to be echoed by his comrades, judging by the affirmative grunts that follow. The man links his fingers beneath the flowing sleeves of his robes, his face schooled back into serenity as he turns to his comrades once again, a small smile playing on his lips. "It is nothing we cannot mend, though."

Another man, too, lowers his hood and walks forward, his slender and tall figure almost towering above the rest, skin so pale and lucent it puts even the silvery moon to shame. A gentle breeze follows his every step, gradually building up in intensity until the hems of their robes flutter violently in the wind, though none of them seem to be affected by the sandstorm that is being stirred. "So stay we shall here, Luhan?" He queries with a quiet, impassive voice, but they all hear it with perfect clarity even in the roar of the winds, as though his words are being carried through the air. The man is, after all, its master.

The lashes of the one called Luhan flutter shut in place of a nod, and his voice is equally as quiet when he speaks next, almost as though the words are directed to himself and himself alone. "Remember what we have agreed upon. Show not your faces before the time is ripe, or it will all be for naught."

 

╫

He wakes up with a sharp gasp.

The rush of air that fills his lungs hits him hard and fast, making him feel as though he's been brought back from the dead, his soul slamming back into his physical body with a sharp tug from an invisible force. The next thing that invades his senses is complete disorientation, his head spinning in a momentum so fast that it prompts him to clutch the edge of whatever he's lying upon, dry heaving onto the ground.

His throat burns from the force and the lack of moisture when he's finally done, and Jongin falls onto his back once again, the back of his arm pressed against his forehead as he tries to take in more air. Through the pained tears clouding his vision, he vaguely makes out that he's lying on a four-poster bed, red velvet drapes hanging heavily across the beams and windows and setting the room in a dark, scarlet glow. The silk sheets beneath him are unfamiliar, as is the softness of the mattress, nothing like the bed he's used to sleeping in. Despite how comfortable it feels, how tempting it is to fall back into a deep slumber to dispel the dull ache in his head, Jongin doesn't fall prey to it.

He swings his legs over the edge of the bed and plants his feet on the ground, feeling the softness of the rug against the soles of his feet. Only when the most of his headache is gone that Jongin starts becoming more attuned to his surroundings, and the first thing he takes note of is the acridity filling the air, sharp with the smell of rusting metal and smoke and acid and other things he can't put a finger upon. One thing is for sure, though – the place where he's in is fast falling victim to decay.

With the back of his arm sealed against his nose to block out as much of the stench as he can – Jongin idly notes that he's been divested of his robes, and is currently clad in a loose white shirt and pants, the ties which are supposed to hold his shirt shut completely undone – he groggily pads out of the room, trying to make sense of his whereabouts. He glances curiously at the candles which line the walls on either side of him when he exits, flickering in a rhythmical, almost synchronised pattern even though the air in the hallway is still. It's not much later that he realises that no real warmth is coming from these candles, that they're being operated by an unknown force. It's the best possible explanation he can come up with in his current state, but Jongin pays no real heed to his rather confused thoughts, walking further and further down the path he's currently on.

The place is an odd mixture of ancient and modern curiosity, stone walls adorned by strange objects Jongin has never before seen in his life. He's almost a hundred percent sure he's not on Planet EXO – because he knows every nook and cranny of Planet EXO by heart – but he can't, for the life of him, fathom where he could possibly be, or how he had ended up here to begin with. He's never been known to be out of control of his own powers before, unlike the occasional blunders Chanyeol makes, so this is all very confusing to him.

It's only when he arrives at the tail end of the hallway that Jongin's skin crawls with familiarity, knowing that one of his brothers are close by. Jongin exhales in relief; at least he's not in this strange place alone, and the thought itself prompts him to walk just a little faster, pushing past a heavy set of doors in anticipation.

Not surprisingly, he finds Luhan seated at the far end of the hall that he enters, though Jongin is rather intrigued by the sight that greets him. There's no doubt that this place is swathed in luxury, judging by the expensive-looking tapestries and draperies that catch Jongin's attention, but they appear terribly out of place, clashing greatly with the curious objects which are emitting light from all around him. Luhan almost seems like the ruler of this place, when he's seated in a chair that looks like the throne to a great king, with one person feeding him fruits and another fanning him languidly.

If Luhan had seemed bored just moments ago, he now breaks into a bright smile at the mere sight of Jongin, adjusting himself in his seat. The two servants suddenly halt in their actions, before turning stiffly and starts walking in Jongin's direction towards the door, seemingly obeying a silent order for them to leave. Jongin's skin crawls again – this time from an unmistakable chill – when these two servants pass him by and Jongin catches a glimpse of the look in their eyes. Their gazes are blank, _empty_ , and Jongin knows for sure that Luhan has controlled their minds. Luhan has never resorted to such extremes before; _it's tasteless to rob someone of their free will_ , Luhan had told him back on Planet EXO. So why–?

"Jongin," Luhan breathes, dragging him away from his thoughts. "You're finally awake."

His words don't help with Jongin's confusion, and Jongin cocks his head to the side. "What do you mean, 'finally'? Where is this place?" He asks, just as Luhan comes to a stop before him. He smells like the early spring breeze as usual, and Jongin tries not to inhale too deeply. It's intoxicating in its simplicity.

"You don't remember?" Luhan wonders, though he doesn't seem very surprised. "This is Planet Earth, Jongin. We made the decision to come here. You have been out cold since we arrived, which is coming to a week now."

The softness of Luhan's voice does nothing to cushion the shock, because Jongin's eyes go wide at the information. "A week?! But how–"

"The travel from Planet EXO to Earth has taken a great toll on you, Jongin." He tells Jongin mildly. "It is not easy to have made such a distance when you have to transport so many of us at the same time, but you did it."

It's only then that Jongin's eyes widen in recognition. Indeed, they have made the decision to leave their home planet for good, seeing as its lifespan is fast coming to its end. The planet had enjoyed a good, long life, and it was time for it to be transformed into yet another speck of dust in space. Not even the Tree of Life could have saved it, they all knew that much. It's how Luhan had found this planet in his visions, a land which holds so much promise, but has been wrecked to no ends by the hands of irresponsible inhabitants. Together, with the intention to restore the planet to its original beauty, all twelve of the Guardians had decided to risk their lives and make the travel, bringing along whatever they could salvage of the Tree.

Now that they're here, Jongin is beginning to realise just how ruined this planet has become.

"I presume that the rest are out there, carrying out our cause?" Jongin asks, smiling a little to show Luhan that he's managed to recall whatever he's supposed to.

Luhan nods. "Hard at work, they are. The inhabitants of this planet are beginning to notice us. It is only a matter of time before they rally behind us and throw us their support. After all, we hold the key for their continuous existence. They would be fools to not see that."

"And Yixing?" Jongin adds as an afterthought. He can't sense his presence, which piques Jongin's curiosity. It doesn't quite make sense that Yixing, of all people, should be out there in the midst of the toxic environment.

He doesn't know if he's imagining it, either, but Luhan's amiable smile is suddenly gone without a trace at the mere mention of Yixing's name, and indifference has taken its place instead. It makes Jongin squirm, but he doesn't say a thing about it.

"He's in the stables." Luhan says, his tone clipped, and then he's pushing past Jongin and leaving him all alone in the too-large hall.

Jongin frowns a little at Luhan's odd display of emotions, but thinks nothing more of it. With a soft cracking sound Jongin disappears from the room, leaving behind only a wisp of smoke that too dissipates into the air.

 

╫

True to Luhan's words, Jongin finds Yixing tending to the animals in the stable with his gift when Jongin arrives. Jongin doesn't immediately walk up to Yixing, however, taking time to instead look at his surroundings first.

When they'd first arrived, it had been dark, and Jongin hadn't been able to gather much about the place that they were supposed to call home from now on. But now that the sun is high up in the sky and scorching to the feel, Jongin can finally see what Luhan had meant when he said Planet Earth is on a fast track to complete decay. The land around them lay barren, barely any plants and animals able to survive the extreme heat and the toxic air, and even those which did survive are on the brink of death. The sky is cloudless, almost as though someone had slapped blue ink on canvas and plastered it above them, and Jongin runs the back of his hand across his neck to wipe away the sweat which had formed on his skin. The weather is insanely warm.

"Oh, you're awake." Yixing speaks up just then when he spots Jongin, the smile on his lips clashing greatly with the barren state all around them. His hands are still hovering over the small rabbit on the ground that's breathing shallowly, and Jongin tries not to let the sight bother him.

"This place is in a terrible state." Jongin mentions, his eyes wandering on their own accord again despite himself, before he forcefully fixes his gaze on Yixing. He's growing sicker by the moment, considering how he's used to seeing foliage and signs of life all around him. Planet Earth is wrong on every single level he can think of; what did its inhabitants even _do_ to it to have reduced Earth to such a state before its lifespan is even due?

"Reminds you of Planet EXO when it was on the verge of destruction, doesn't it?" Yixing says, voice a wistful melancholy. Jongin doesn't suppose any of them will get over the reality that their home planet no longer exists, and he nods. It hits far too close to home, and Jongin squats beside Yixing, trying to find something else to distract him with. Sorrow is not an expression that's suited for Yixing.

Unfortunately, his attention automatically homes in on the rabbit that's still lying on the ground. It doesn't escape Jongin's eye that the small animal is no closer to recovering from whatever poison that's in its body than it had five minutes ago, despite being enveloped in the tell-tale blue glow which indicates that Yixing is trying to work his magic. He can't stop himself from asking, "Why are you wasting your energy on it, when you know it's beyond saving?"

The look on Yixing's face is absolutely heart-breaking when he glances up from the animal. "Because isn't that what we came here for? To save them?" He asks, and it's not lost on Jongin that Yixing _knows_ his efforts are futile. It's just not right; Yixing's the strongest Healer that Planet EXO has ever had. If even Yixing can't save a small creature like this, Jongin dreads to think how strong the poison that's entrenched in everything on Earth is, and if they themselves are going to survive it in the long run.

He sure hopes they will.

 

╫

Jongin pops up in a random alleyway one afternoon, when he's feeling more put together after the initial power drain he'd experienced trying to bring all of them to Earth, blending into the shadows cast by the sun upon a tall building for a brief moment when someone – a human, as Luhan calls them – stumbles past the entrance. He doesn't think it's a good idea to be seen utilising his powers for now, when people are still sceptical and believe them of practising _witchcraft_ , whatever that's supposed to mean.

It hasn't been smooth sailing for the rest of the Guardians, even if it's been close to a month since they came. Of course, Planet Earth has come to see a lot more disasters than it had in the recent years, but no one needs to know that the Guardians are the ones causing them. The Guardians have every intention to cleanse this world and make it their own, rebuilding it using the very essence of their powers and creating a life force which they can control. After all, why let the planet die an early death when they can do something to reverse the damage that's been done?

It's with such thoughts that the Guardians are ploughing on, exerting their powers before the eyes of many to convince themselves that there is salvation yet for Earth, that they're not going to die prematurely because of their own greed at wantonly exploiting Earth's resources. There are already a group of believers rallying their support, which is steadily gaining momentum as the days pass. No one wants to suffer any more than they need to.

He ignores the fact that he looks much healthier and less affected by the toxic air than those around him when he strolls out of the alleyway, however, blending as much as he can into the background. It's not difficult, when there are shadows everywhere, and Jongin isn't the Shadow Master for nothing. It takes him all the way to Junmyeon, who's in the midst of convincing people that there is hope yet for clean water supply. He sits in the shadows and watches with fascination, how Junmyeon collects the moisture in the air and purifies them in the process, before gradually filling up a previously dry pond with water that's safe for consumption. Jongin has seen other water sources scattered about, but the sight of humans dropping dead with blood pooling in their mouths after coughing and hacking away upon drinking them remains fresh in his mind. Even so, there are still those who have decided to risk their lives, just to quench their dire thirst for a little. They are going to die one way or another, anyway.

Only when Junmyeon's done does Jongin approach him. "You have become quite the celebrity here," Jongin quips, to which Junmyeon merely smirks in response to. "Things seem to be going well on your end."

"Water is much too important for them to give up on." Junmyeon informs, watching as everyone in the locality who has heard of the news of a clean water source fighting to gather some for their own. He doesn't even bat an eyelash when some scuffle occurs because of it. Humans are such predictable creatures, sticking true to the rule that only the fittest will survive. Jongin, on the other hand, sighs at the sight and turns away from it. It's distasteful, how humans and EXOnians look alike, yet can live with such little dignity. He thinks it rather puts them in a bad light, and Jongin absolutely refuses to be compared to them.

"Won't the poison in the soil taint the water source, though?" Jongin queries, genuinely curious. If nothing can grow on these barren lands, it's a sure sign that the contamination is much too severe for anything to thrive in them. And if his hypothesis rings true, then it won't be too long before these people are going to drop like flies too. So much for them harbouring the hopes of prolonging their lives a little, but Jongin supposes that humans have long since learned to live in the moment, especially when the future seems so bleak for them.

Junmyeon shrugs as he starts leading the both of them away from the locality, a sign that he's ready to return to the castle which has now been turned into their new home. "Kyungsoo has helped ensure that the soil is safe enough to hold the water. I don't think it'll be a problem, at least not so soon."

Jongin laughs at the information as he pulls Junmyeon into the vortex the moment they're out of public eye. Trust his brothers to have everything planned out.

 

╫

There's a twisted sort of beauty to the landscape he sees before him, which is blanketed in white, white snow, when Jongin appears in the locality where Minseok's supposed to be. The icy chill is thick in the air, turning Jongin's warm breaths into condensation as he trudges across the rooftop to join Minseok on the ledge, but he's not completely affected by it. Being Guardians, their powers resonate through each other's bodies, which significantly dulls the effect their respective powers would otherwise have on a layperson. It's not a bad thing; Jongin's been told by the battle priests on Planet EXO that it's to prevent any one power from reigning supreme over another, and to deter any infighting should they occur.

Minseok is playing with a snowflake when Jongin comes to sit beside him, and he turns a little to offer Jongin a smile, as if pleased with what he's done to the area. The harsh winter winds are blowing, and the people who are not of sound enough mind shiver violently as they make their way through the snow-covered streets, their lips blue from the cold, clothes barely enough to withstand the temperature. Again, the winds are nothing but a gentle breeze to Jongin, telling him that Sehun had just been here not long ago.

"As obsessed with white as always, I see." Jongin jests, stealing the snowflake out of Minseok's fingers only to watch it melt in his palm. He makes a face.

"It's a tropical area," Minseok informs, as if it explains everything. He conjures yet another snowflake to toy around with. "People here have never seen snow, if they have never travelled far enough. I'm doing them a favour."

Jongin raises an eyebrow. "They don't seem appreciative of it, though. They're not made for this sort of weather, obviously."

"I know." The other man says with a grin. "I'm planning on lending them a helping hand, if you will."

"Ah," the realisation dawns upon Jongin, and he snaps his fingers, creating a swirling portal for Minseok, whom squeezes his shoulder in thanks. Jongin's already used to his brothers requiring a fast trip to another portion of the planet, seeing that it's twice the size of Planet EXO, and it's virtually impossible to travel anywhere else otherwise. Despite being extremely technologically advanced, the resources on Earth have been depleted to the extent that these devices are essentially useless, and humans are struggling just to survive.

Shame, but the undeniable fact that they've brought this upon themselves remains. Jongin can't say he feels sorry for them.

Several seconds later, Minseok's already in the middle of the square, silently exerting his powers and reversing the damage he's done to the area, even though no one needs to know Minseok had been the one to unleash the harsh winter upon them. Either way, the weather on Earth has turned completely unpredictable in the recent years, with raging winds wreaking havoc on one day and the scorching sun burning lands dry on the very next, Jongin has learned, so no one would suspect them having had a hand in its creation.

What Jongin knows, though, is the fact that they're gradually gaining recognition throughout the world, as the group of mysterious _humans_ (they all scoff at the label) with supernatural abilities who can help them reverse the harsh living conditions on Earth. Sometimes, he doesn't know if he should laugh at the humans for being so gullible.

 

╫

Truth is, Jongin has always been attracted to Luhan, his looks fascinating in a breath-taking way. Although Luhan may appear delicate in the eyes of others, Jongin knows that the older Guardian is anything _but_ that. He's seen the true extent of Luhan's powers before, and he has every right to be labelled as one of the strongest Guardians around, even if others might dispute it. It's why Jongin can't take his eyes away from Luhan, even if he tried.

Right now, watching Luhan's form sprawled across the velvet chaise lounge, eyes hooded as he regards the humans standing before him, Jongin finds that the attraction still remains strong. Luhan's drawing up and balancing different images in front of him, only half-listening to the things the humans are telling him; there's no doubt that they are raining praises after praises down upon his beauty, judging by the boredom clouding Luhan's expressions. Jongin knows better though; Luhan may acknowledge that his looks stand out from the others, but he absolutely loathes it when someone calls him _beautiful_. It's demeaning, Luhan had told Jongin once, when Jongin himself had made the same mistake, and it was the only time he'd seen the cruel side of Luhan, when Luhan had utilised his powers and clamped down on Jongin's throat with an invisible force, strong enough to hurt but not enough to kill.

Luhan can be so beautiful in a twisted way, but Jongin will never harbour such thoughts whenever he's in the same room as Luhan.

Jongin tenses a little when the humans begin to grow agitated after Luhan says a quiet word to them, and without hesitation, he disappears with a soft crack and reappears right beside Luhan, draping himself across the armrest of the chaise lounge as a show of warning. Jongin knows how sensual he is to the eyes of others, and he plays his cards well, smirking a little when he notices the way one of the men's throat works at the sight. Luhan's warm hand finds its way to Jongin's thigh, resting it close enough to where Jongin really wants it to be yet not nearly close enough.

He takes the opportunity to assess the three humans standing before them, now that he's close enough. Despite being dressed to the nines in attire which Jongin is sure costs a lot, it does little to conceal what's actually happening beneath all that fabric. The mottled, diseased skin makes its presence known when they gesticulate, and it's so easy to guess what they need. Yixing.

"We have no need for money." Luhan speaks up just then, continuing from where their conversation had left off before Jongin had interrupted them. "On the contrary, we possess everything that _you_ need, and you are in no position to bargain."

The man at the forefront – Jongin presumes he's the leader of this small group, judging by how the other two men have kept a respectful distance – visibly pales at Luhan's statement. "Wh–what do you need, my Lord?" He stammers, and Jongin resists the urge to roll his eyes at the title. Luhan's not one to fall for flattery that easily, after all, and they have not been trained to think of themselves as lords of the land. The Guardians have always hid their faces beneath thick robes and behind porcelain masks back on Planet EXO, and as those who have been handpicked by Mama to safeguard the planet, they have never even expected for others to express gratitude, for it is their duty to protect the planet and its Tree of Life. And great pride they have as Guardians.

"Free reign." Luhan says succinctly, leaning his frame a little heavier against Jongin's side. "You are the most influential man on this planet, are you not? Rally your support behind us, and we will give our word to turn this world anew. Otherwise, you know very well the end of which you will soon meet. The choice is in your hands."

The corner of Luhan's mouth curls into a satisfied smirk even before the man before them has spoken, and mere seconds later the confirmation comes.

"The world is yours to rule, my Lord."

 

╫

Everything in the universe hangs on a precarious balance, and immense effort has to be made to ensure that the balance isn't upset, because what awaits at the end of the line if it should happen is only destruction.

It's one of the first things the battle priests have taught them, when they'd just accepted the responsibility of being the Guardians of EXO. Jongin remembers it just as clearly now, how an olden battle had happened because the then-Guardians had come in touch with their greed for recognition and had fought against themselves, almost to the point of complete annihilation. It had been by Mama's grace and timely intervention that they'd been stopped at all, or Jongin and the rest of the current Guardians might not even have existed.

Right now, Jongin can see it clearly, how the humans have completely disregarded that aspect. They may have given rise to the most sophisticated technologies the universe has ever seen to date, but what is the point when they've abused their natural resources to the point of exhaustion, leaving behind equipment which do not have the ability to function, owing to the lack of energy sources? It doesn't end there; wherever Jongin goes, all he sees are scrap metals and toxic wastes lying about, polluting the earth even more, thereby contributing to the humans' ill health and non-sustenance of their own planet.

It's a shame, how beings so great with their brilliance have single-handedly carved their downfall, but at least it allows the Guardians to convince them that the humans _need_ their help if they even want a chance at surviving the next five years.

Their intentions remain the same regardless of the obvious support the leader of the strongest nation on Planet Earth is rallying behind them. It's enough to sway those who are treading the line of hesitance, but not nearly adequate to completely convert the non-believers who still think that the Guardians are exercising nonsense they call as _black magic_. They are stopping at nothing to have the humans' absolute support.

It's a majestic sight, to witness Yifan's dragon form slicing through the air in free flight, his scaly wings evoking strong winds which can almost rival the ones conjured by Sehun. It's again a part of their plans, to have Yifan terrorise the citizens of a locality called Beijing, where tens of millions of people had supposedly lived in in the past. Yifan's doing a great job using his second ability, making everyone run helter-skelter with large fireballs, destroying massive pieces of land at a time. It's only by a miracle that he hasn't managed to kill anyone with a direct hit yet, but that's where Yifan's supreme accuracy comes into play.

Jongin has to stifle a laugh when Luhan steps up to the game – it's supposed to be his turn to prove his abilities, that he's not all talk – because Jongin knows how big Yifan's pride is. Their plan goes like this: Luhan is supposed to subdue Yifan's dragon form with his telekinesis abilities, making the great dragon bow down to Luhan's much smaller physique by force. It's meant to be a form of symbolism, showing the people that even someone of Luhan's frame holds great power, considering how the leader of the strongest nation on Earth (Jongin still can't be arsed to remember his name) had labelled Luhan as the leader of the Guardians. It is true, to a certain extent, because Luhan is the Oracle of Planet EXO, the very existence that binds the minds of all the Guardians together and to Mama.

Jongin knows that Yifan isn't showing the full extent of his abilities, opting instead to fall fairly easily under the control of Luhan's powers. He's seen the two Guardians fighting against each other in a no-holds-barred battle, back on Planet EXO, and this isn't remotely close to the fearsome sight he's had the opportunity to behold. Regardless, it earns the admiration of the humans when the mighty dragon is finally subdued, if the cheers are anything to go by, and Jongin hopes than Luhan has enough sense to stop these humans from launching an attack on Yifan when he's down and helpless. He knows Yifan will retaliate when he's pissed, and if it ever comes to that point, these humans might as well prepare themselves to meet their Maker.

Luhan, for all that he loves to soak up the praises lavished by others, surprisingly keeps a low profile this time, leaving the locality soon after he's 'captured' Yifan. Jongin meets him with an eyebrow raised in one of the back alleys, and he can't stop himself from asking the question which has been bugging him for a while now. "What sort of deal did you cut with Yifan, for him to allow you to walk all over his pride like that?"

The Oracle merely smiles and pats Jongin on the cheek, the mirth dancing in his eyes. "I promised to get down on my knees if he agrees to my plans."

Jongin pauses in his steps and frowns at Luhan's back at his words. Luhan _never_ begs. What's that supposed to mean?

 

╫

For someone whose abilities are more supportive than offensive, Jongin is mostly forced to stay at the castle where they have decided to hole up at, passing the days by visiting his brothers who are scattered all around the new planet. It's the same for Luhan and Yixing, and should they find the need to travel, they will have to depend on Jongin to get them around. Human transportation takes far too long for them to reach their destination, and patience isn't exactly Luhan's strongest point.

While Luhan and Jongin's tendencies to stick in one place are more pronounced, Yixing's whereabouts are a little more unpredictable. Sometimes, he'd venture out of the castle onto the streets of the town closest to them, healing any living thing who has a shred of chance at survival. Sometimes he'd be in the grand hall, receiving foreign dignitaries who still own enough wealth to travel halfway across the world for a cure for their diseased state, even when their own citizens are dying of famine and poverty. Sometimes he'd be in the stables, looking forlornly at the horses which he isn't able to save, torturing himself with the image of them slowly withering away. It's the last of the three which hits Jongin the hardest whenever he stumbles upon Yixing's sad gaze, speaking soothing words to the animals in a desperate hope that they'll pass on a little more peacefully, and Yixing never stops trying to lessen their suffering, no matter how small his contribution. He stops trying to talk Yixing out of it after the fifth time, knowing Yixing has a soft spot for animals, and would always sit by Yixing in silence instead, just to offer him some company in the midst of his sorrow.

This day, though, Jongin finds Yixing in the garden, hunched over a sapling as he channels his powers into it. It's a rare sight, when every other plant around them has withered completely from the toxic soil, and Jongin wonders why Yixing even bothers attempting when it's going to die anyway. Despite the running thoughts in his mind, Jongin sighs quietly and squats beside Yixing.

"What are you doing, Yixing?" Jongin asks, when it doesn't seem as though Yixing's going to reply him any time soon. He seems awfully immersed and determined at getting the plant to grow to notice Jongin's presence, which doesn't make sense. The soil is heavily poisoned with chemicals; they all knew that. Jongin had thought Yixing would at least stop doing something that's going to prove worthless.

It's only then that Yixing blinks and looks up, but the warm, blue glow surrounding the plant doesn't falter in the least. "It's the Tree of Life. I'm trying to get it to grow, so at least we can connect with Mama easily that way."

Jongin frowns a little. He'd forgotten that they had brought a part of the Tree with them when they'd evacuated Planet EXO with the intention of giving it a new home, and to reconnect with Mama when they manage to nurture it back to a good size. But they have never tested the elements of the soil on Planet Earth, and to plant it blindly meant that they're taking a huge risk – a risk they can't really afford to make, seeing that the Tree is crucial to reconnecting them to Mama. If the Tree dies, they'll be left with nothing, and soon their powers will rapidly spiral out of control. "Yixing," he says urgently, fully poised to dig the sapling Tree out of the earth, "the Tree might wither like the rest of the plants. We can't–"

Yixing reaches out to stop Jongin with an air of calmness, his hand warm on Jongin's arm. "Relax, I've had Kyungsoo provide the best possible soil conditions for the Tree to thrive on. I'm just giving it a little boost." He tells Jongin, and Jongin finds the tenseness seeping out of his being.

"That's great, then." Jongin says with a small smile, leaning against Yixing who reciprocates the gesture. "I can't wait to see the Tree in its actual state again."

There's warmth in Yixing's gaze and voice when he says, "Me too, Jongin. Me too."

 

╫

Planet Earth is soon divided into two factions – the side that's rallying their undivided support behind the Guardians, and the faction that's actively going against their cause. Even within each nation, the humans are divided in their opinions, many who are still sceptical about the Guardians' abilities, despite having been proved to time and again that the Guardians _can_ help, and all hope is not lost for Planet Earth's continuous survival, despite how bleak the situation might be. It's at these localities that the Guardians are doubling their efforts at converting the humans into complete believers, after Luhan has made a prophecy in public, claiming that Planet Earth's complete destruction is hanging at the horizon, and unpredictable and extreme weather changes will precede that end.

Every other day, these places would be overrun by a different disaster – earthquakes, snowstorms, tornadoes, floods – all called upon by the Guardians, and they'd let their powers wreak havoc upon these lands until the humans would come begging for any of the Guardians to help stop these freak weather changes, that they can no longer bear with it. If there's one thing they can exploit about the humans, it's their gullible side which will buy anything the Guardians feed them, and a prophecy of their death is one that they cannot ignore, no matter how cynical they are about the basis of the Guardians' powers. But when the Guardians bring the erratic weather under complete control without putting in much effort in full view of these humans, they haven't a choice but to believe in the unbelievable.

Jongin doesn't usually care about his brothers' actions, so long as they manage to bring every human on Planet Earth to their knees in submission, in order for them to begin cleansing the planet of the poison that's so deeply entrenched in every corner, but it takes one incident for him to be completely on edge and wary about what they're actually doing.

It's a few weeks after the Guardians have stepped up with their efforts in converting the rest of the humans into their believers, when Jongin catches wind of a great fire which had razed an entire city to the ground. Berlin, Jongin hears, the place where the opposition towards the Guardians had been the strongest, and immediately he's in the city, wanting to find out more about the sudden inferno. An eerie chill runs down his spine the moment he appears in the middle of Gendarmenmarkt, and finds himself surrounded by the ruins of the fallen cathedrals. The air is deathly still, not a single sign of life around, and it's much, much worse than the stables in the castle where the stench of death had been extremely thick even then. Jongin cups a hand over his mouth, trying to breathe as little as possible so that he wouldn't get sick. The smell of charred, rotting bodies and the acridity in the air do not mix well, and Jongin keeps trying to find things to keep his mind off the foul odour.

The next thing his mind latches onto is how supercharged the air is with energy. Jongin doesn't like how he manages to recognise the energy source without much effort, very distinctively a mixture of Chanyeol and Baekhyun's powers. This isn't supposed to happen; they aren't supposed to commit murder, not in such a great degree, and Jongin wonders if Chanyeol had lost control of his abilities. It won't be a surprise if he did, considering how labile his powers are despite it being strong. It's been years since the battle priests have pointed Chanyeol's weakness out, and it's already under considerably better control, but Chanyeol's still prone to the occasional errors, especially when his powers are combined with another Guardian's.

It's with such a conclusion that Jongin disappears in a wisp of smoke, right before the ruins of the Concert House, mind whirring from all the possibilities as he travels back to the castle. As usual, he finds Luhan seated in the Great Hall when he arrives, but this time, it almost seems as though Luhan has been expecting him. The mirth is dancing in Luhan's eyes when Jongin gets close enough, and it's barely concealed when Luhan greets him.

"Is there something you'd like to ask me, Jongin?" He asks, and Jongin wonders if he had left his mind channel open for everyone to tap into. It's a rare blunder on his part, one which Jongin will reprimand himself over later, but at this particular moment, all Jongin wants is for his questions to be answered.

"That fire which happened in Berlin. It razed the entire city to the ground, and killed everyone in the vicinity. I think Chanyeol must have lost control of his powers." Jongin reports, because Luhan rarely ever bothers with what everyone else is doing on the planet. He's there to throw in the occasional suggestion on how things should be done, but Luhan almost never meddles directly or asks everyone else to exercise restraint. It's something that's expected of everyone, the holding back.

"Do you honestly think so?" Instead of being surprised or disturbed, Luhan seems almost serene as he throws the question at Jongin. "Chanyeol has far better control over his double abilities now than ever, Jongin. He's been training hard, you know."

It makes Jongin frown even harder. Nothing makes sense. "I don't understand. It doesn't explain the incident–"

"It's meant to be a warning, Jongin." Luhan interrupts him, and Jongin's completely taken aback by the statement. When he looks up next, Luhan's right in front of him, bodies close enough for Jongin to press against Luhan if he wanted to – and he _wants_ to hold Luhan, so badly. The next words which leave Luhan's lips are chillingly cold, causing a shiver to shoot down the length of Jongin's spine. "I sanctioned the attack."

Jongin's throat seizes at the mere thought that _Luhan_ is the mastermind behind it, because his actions have deviated so far from what they had initially planned before they had evacuated Planet EXO, and he can't help but wonder what has changed along the way. "We said we wouldn't kill–"

"I know what we said, Jongin." Luhan's voice still remains incredibly calm and even, despite the fact that he'd allowed Chanyeol and Baekhyun to annihilate an entire city. It merely reinforces the opinion Jongin has of him, that Luhan is twistedly beautiful. "But circumstances change. How long are we supposed to wait before the rest of these foolish humans come around and accept that we can change their planet, if only they would stop standing in our way? Ten years? Fifteen? Until they're done destroying the planet and it's far too late for us to do something about it?"

"It's still not right–" Jongin chokes on his emotions, feeling his head spin from the impact of Luhan's words. It's not as though he doesn't understand the rationale behind Luhan's actions, but they're supposed to be _protectors_ , not _killers_.

As if catching on to Jongin's thoughts, Luhan smiles gently at him and tips Jongin's face up by the chin to hold his gaze, and Jongin's nearly rendered breathless by the sight. It's the way Jongin had always wanted Luhan to look at him, ever since they'd been children and were new to their powers, like Jongin's the only one who mattered to Luhan. His heart clenches in his chest from the tenderness in Luhan's eyes. "I know you're upset, and I'm sorry you had to see the aftermath of our decision, but I promise you that this will be a one-off incident. There will be no repeats." He tells Jongin, and Jongin swears his heart almost stops beating when Luhan closes the distance between them and plants a tender kiss on his lips which simultaneously ignites the passion within him. Now that he's had a taste of Luhan's lips, he wants _more_. "Do you believe in me?"

While Jongin doesn't deny that he has his doubts, that there's a possibility Luhan might be exerting his powers on him and controlling his mind, it takes one look at the sincerity in Luhan's eyes for Jongin to quash those thoughts entirely. The battle priests' words are not lost on him – Luhan's powers have no effect on him, as part of the check and balance system which is in place – and it's then that Jongin realises just how much Luhan means to him, that he can't afford to lose the man who's standing before him right now.

With a slight quiver in his voice, Jongin nods and whispers, "I do, Luhan. I do," and he surrenders completely when Luhan leans in once again to deepen the kiss he's given Jongin from before.

 

╫

"Something is different about you today–" Yixing comments when Jongin appears in the garden, which is surprising considering the fact that Yixing is almost always lost in his own world, and rarely ever notices Jongin's presence until Jongin leans against his side. "–you seem happy."

Jongin smiles to himself as he walks towards Yixing where he's hunched over the Tree, remembering the way Luhan's hands had felt as he ran them across Jongin's bare chest, how Luhan had caressed Jongin with his touches and his lips. He can feel his cheeks turning warm at the memory of Luhan in him, but that's where he's thankful that Yixing can't look into his mind. The intimate moments he's spent with Luhan barely a couple of hours ago will always remain his secret. They've been a family for as long as Jongin has been a Guardian, and he loathes to think that a shift in relationship dynamics between him and Luhan would upset their bond with the others.

"Is there a reason why I shouldn't be?" Jongin asks cryptically instead, hoping that Yixing won't make him delve into details. He's still pleasantly sore, and isn't really in the mood to explain things.

Yixing looks at him funnily, then gestures at their surroundings, where the land lays barren and almost devoid of life. The rose-tinted glass falls away at once, and Jongin's stomach is filled with an unpleasant sensation. "I thought you'd always been upset by the environment we're living in, is all."

"I am still." Jongin confesses; he doesn't think it's a bad thing to distract himself with thoughts of Luhan once in a while, not when there's nothing but misery around them. He'd be on a rapid downward spiral to a state of insanity, otherwise. "But it's depressing to think about it all the time."

Yixing smiles softly at him. "Now you're beginning to see things my way. How did your investigation go, by the way?"

 _Ugh_ , Jongin winces internally. He'd been intent on not thinking about Berlin for the next couple of weeks, at least, but Yixing's somewhat oblivious most of the time. He doesn't fault the older man for it, though. There's a brief moment of contemplation, before Jongin finally settles on an answer. "Chanyeol lost control over his abilities, it seems. He's sorry it happened."

"There's nothing we can do about it. You can't bring back lives which are lost." Yixing hums in mild disapproval, but doesn't overthink the matter. He, too, knows of Chanyeol's illustrious history of blunders, but what surprises Jongin more is the fact that Yixing doesn't appear as disturbed as Jongin had expected over the news. He knows that Yixing values the life of another a lot more than all of them combined, so this is really something new.

Not wanting to dwell over the morbid state of Berlin, however, Jongin peers closer at the sapling of the Tree between Yixing's hands and changes the topic. "Shouldn't the Tree be a lot larger now?" He asks, knowing that by suffusing his powers into the Tree, Yixing would technically be able to accelerate its growth. Regarding the Tree right now though, it doesn't seem as though it has grown even an inch taller than the last time Jongin had been here to see it.

Yixing grunts a little at the question. "My powers don't seem to be working the same way it did on EXO. I don't know what's going on. Maybe it's finally getting exhausted from all the healing I've been doing. Maybe the Tree really isn't suited for life on Earth after all."

The statement has Jongin worried, because all the other Guardians are banking on the revival of the Tree to have full access to their powers, and for them to stabilise it. The longer they spend being out of contact with Mama, the likelihood of their abilities spiralling out of control and wreak havoc not unlike what Chanyeol had done to Berlin would climb even higher – this time unintentional and possibly unable to be tamed by another. If they aren't careful enough, the Guardians themselves might bear the brunt of the destruction brought on by their own powers. Jongin isn't prepared to face that in the nearest possible future.

"We need to have faith. It's what the battle priests have always taught us, isn't it? Have faith that things will go right, and it eventually will." Jongin tries to sound optimistic, and hopes that he isn't failing miserably at his attempt. He doesn't sound very convincing to himself.

Yixing recalls his powers and squeezes Jongin's hand with a smile. It's one that makes Jongin feel warm in his chest. "You're right. I shouldn't make such hasty conclusions when it hasn't even been that long since I started nurturing the Tree."

"Come on," Jongin says and pulls Yixing to stand. The dark circles beneath his eyes are beginning to worry Jongin, and he loathes to think that the toxic air is beginning to take its toll on Yixing who's been outdoors more than he should. Yixing tends to forget about his own health sometimes, and Earth is too dangerous a place for him to do so. "Let's go inside. That's enough gardening for you for a day."

Jongin kind of likes it that Yixing offers no resistance, and lets Jongin guide him indoors. He's such a great contrast from Luhan, who prefers taking the reins, and it's honestly a fresh change.

 

╫

He blinks in utter surprise at what he's seeing, unable to believe that Berlin has been transformed from a land of complete ruins into a land of its former glory, just within the short span of a week.

Despite being rather upset over what Chanyeol and Baekhyun had done previously, Jongin is beginning to realise what sort of plan Luhan has up his sleeves after all. Indeed, having Berlin razed to the ground might have been a form of stern (albeit false) warning that Planet Earth is fast meeting its doom, but by putting up an impressive show of bringing up a city from the dead in such a short span of time, it's also meant to prove that the Guardians have the capacity to rebuild a city without mobilising massive amounts of manpower, which is something Earth cannot afford to provide right now, with the state it's in.

A shudder runs down the length of Jongin's spine. He can't even begin to imagine what exactly goes on in Luhan's mind, if he can come up with something of this magnitude without the others being any wiser. And frankly, Jongin only gets even more impressed by Luhan by the day.

"Like it?" Luhan beams from beside Jongin, evidently having caught onto his thoughts. He'd climbed into Jongin's bed and requested for Jongin to teleport him to Berlin that morning, an act which nearly caused Jongin's heart to jump out of his throat. Jongin had agreed despite being half-asleep still; he can never say no to Luhan, anyway, and Luhan's hand had been incredibly warm, pressed against Jongin's bare chest.

That same hand still feels warm in Jongin's palm, when Luhan's fingers thread through his to guide him through the brand new city. It takes Jongin several more moments before he snaps back to reality. "How did you– When did you guys even do this?" He asks, bewildered, because there's no way so many of them could have come here without Jongin's help. Unless his memories had been wiped clean of the deed, Jongin really doesn't remember having brought them to the once-dead space.

While memory altercation is something which only Luhan is capable of, Jongin rids himself of the thought fairly soon. _The Oracle's powers hast naught any influence upon the Shadow Master_ , the battle priests had told him once when Jongin had asked, citing that it's meant to be a check-and-balance mechanism put in place by Mama herself. The Oracle and the Shadow Master are both supposed to lead the Guardians together, one as the light and one as the darkness, and neither can overshadow the other with their abilities. It's how Jongin had realised his feelings for Luhan stem from his very own heart and his latent desires, that his suspicions that Luhan's mind control abilities have been messing with his head are completely unfounded.

"Did you guys plan this all along?" Jongin says in wonderment, his eyes still taking in his surroundings. Luhan is still waiting for him ever so patiently, pausing every now and then to allow Jongin ample time to soak in the details. While he knows his brothers are capable of manipulating the elements, he didn't expect them to be able to do something of such a grand scale. Then again, Jongin suspects that Luhan has been putting his telekinesis abilities to good use.

The smile Luhan's wearing is slightly smug when Jongin finally falls into step with him. "Resurrection can only occur after destruction, don't you agree?"

"Still." Jongin says noncommittally. He still can't wipe the eerie sight of Berlin's complete annihilation just days ago off his mind, and now it's almost as though a brand new city has been built from its ruins.

Luhan squeezes his hand harder still, and Jongin kind of wishes he'd do this more often, not only when Luhan intends to convince Jongin of something. It's difficult, even for him, to guess what exactly Luhan is after. "Certain sacrifices are necessary before victory can be achieved." He tells Jongin, and Jongin's reminded of the little competitions Luhan indulges with Yifan back on Planet EXO. They don't necessarily fight clean all the time; Jongin doesn't want to remember these instances, when it goes against the battle priests' teachings.

When Jongin remains silent through it all, Luhan stops in his tracks and grasps both of Jongin's hands, and holds his gaze seriously. "Trust in me, Jongin. There will be no repeats of such an incident. We merely need something impactful enough to convince the rest of the resistance to come over to our side."

It takes one look at Luhan for the rest of Jongin's defences to crumble, because he just _knows_ when Luhan is at his most sincere with his words. He can't even stop himself from closing the rest of the distance between him and Luhan, wrapping his arms around Luhan's slighter frame and burying his face in the crook of Luhan's neck, a sure sign of his surrender when he whispers _I trust in you_ against the clothes on Luhan's back.

Then again, hasn't Jongin always been defenceless against Luhan?

 

╫

True to Luhan's words, the news of Berlin's resurrection spread like wildfire, and soon enough, a large group of humans are already knocking at its gates, wanting to seek refuge in the newfound utopia on Earth. As foolish as the humans might be, Jongin doesn't think they're blind enough to not realise that the newly-transformed Berlin is a far cry from the ruined state on the rest of the planet, and the Guardians' efforts have thankfully not gone to waste, seeing that many a human begging to be let into Berlin are those who have vocally expressed their distrust in the Guardians at the beginning. The human sacrifices made were not for naught.

But of course, these humans are mostly made up of those who are affluent enough to afford the travel to Berlin, even in the dire state of the planet. Those who are from a lower socioeconomic caste are merely those who are fortunate to be living in a locality close enough to Berlin, that their journey is made possible by foot. The rest of the human populace, though, is left for dead.

"Can't say I feel sorry for them," is what Sehun tells Jongin when he's finally back with them in their new base in Berlin, having just wreaked havoc on Australian soil with a tornado, uprooting what's left of the plants and destroying all the houses within its vicinity. No casualties this time, though; it's meant to be yet another warning to the citizens, who are still strongly opposing the Guardians' rule.

Jongin wonders if they'll ever stop dishing out warnings. At the rate the Guardians are going, Earth is going to be in a complete state of ruins, leaving nothing but starving humans to roam its lands, with no shelter from the harsh weather conditions. Even if the Elemental Guardians do not murder them with their powers, the destruction which the humans themselves have caused to the planet before the Guardians' will be enough to kill. According to the experts on Earth, the toxicity in the air has already surpassed hazardous levels, and it's only a matter of time before the humans choke to death from their own doing. It's only thanks to the sphere which Sehun had casted around Berlin, suffusing the atmosphere with clean, breathable air that they can live so comfortably.

"Why not? They're still lives." Jongin says, feeling a little uncomfortable with the almost-blatant disregard of that fact by his fellow Guardians. It gets clearer with the time they spend being on Planet Earth, how his brothers don't even blink when they're faced with the sight of death now. Perhaps Jongin's still too naïve, but he likes to think that he's just more sympathetic than the rest, third only after Yixing and Junmyeon.

"And?" Sehun looks at him blankly. It's as though someone has stripped him of the last of his emotions. "They've upset the balance that holds the planet's life force together. They've brought this upon themselves, and they're still rejecting our offer to help them. If that's not foolish, I don't know what is." He scoffs, and starts playing with the air current around them. The temperature drops to an all-time low, despite Minseok not being around, and the chill makes its presence known down the column of Jongin's throat. "You could say that natural selection is running its course, and eliminating those who aren't bright enough to fight for their own survival."

 _It's not even a matter of intelligence_ , Jongin wants to argue, because it really isn't. Wealth and luck play the greatest role compared to everything else, when the planet is in such a state. It takes one look at Sehun's disinterested expressions, though, for Jongin to give up the fight before it has even begun. He doesn't think Sehun's bothered to listen, so Jongin keeps silent instead and toys with the shadows cast by the setting sun.

 

╫

It's when darkness looms that Jongin feels most at ease, considering the nature of his abilities. It's also the sole reason why Jongin loves taking quiet strolls down the streets in the dead of the night back on Planet EXO. The silence and the darkness allows him ample space to breathe and think, without having anything too intrusive to disrupt his thoughts. It's on such walks that Jongin had slowly come to realise his feelings for Luhan at all, when he'd occasionally stop in his steps to wonder if the soft smiles Luhan flashes at him means anything more than friendship, if Luhan feels the same way for Jongin as Jongin does for him.

A quiet walk in Berlin, though, is an entirely different matter.

Even though Jongin has mostly placed the scene of the city's annihilation at the back of his mind, he can never find the exact same comfort he's had on Planet EXO. It's not even because he's on a different land – unbeknownst to the humans, the Guardians have actually modelled Berlin after their dear planet, in order to cure their homesickness and longing for their motherland which had birthed them. These streets are more than familiar to Jongin's senses; the air surrounding it not so, even if Sehun has done his best to mimic the sweetness that seems to float in the wind back on Planet EXO.

An unmistakable chill evokes the gooseflesh on Jongin's arms when he passes by the more secluded alleyways, his senses tingling from the awareness that someone's watching him, even if he _knows_ there's no one else around. A curfew has been imposed on the citizens of the new Berlin, one which no human would even dare defy, owing to the announcement made by Luhan that the air will turn toxic after the clock strikes ten. No one seems mindful that they're not allowed to step out of their new homes, though – not when the city is more than they can ever ask for.

These watchful eyes are more than sinister, making Jongin feel sick from within. After all, Jongin is not without an extra ability – the ability to sense the dead, something which comes with his ability that's derived from the darkness and the shadows. And these spirits are angry ones, having been wrongfully killed before their time had been due. It's not as though they can approach him, considering that he is their Lord, but Jongin still feels uncomfortable enough to teleport himself back to their brand new home, unable to bear it any longer.

Luhan is waiting for him in Jongin's room when he returns, something which takes Jongin by surprise, because as far as the change in his relationship with Luhan goes, it has always been Jongin who seeks for Luhan, almost never the other way around. Even the concern in Luhan's eyes is new, and Jongin doesn't know what to make of it. He isn't complaining though, not when Luhan closes the distance between them and pulls Jongin into his arms. For someone whose frame is so slight, Luhan's embrace is surprisingly strong, keeping Jongin grounded through all the unease.

"What's wrong, Jongin?" Luhan asks softly as he combs his fingers through Jongin's hair, as though he hasn't already read Jongin's mind. But it's also one of the reasons why Jongin likes Luhan, because Luhan is always ready to listen to him, even when he can pluck another person's thoughts out of their minds without any difficulty.

Jongin relaxes further in Luhan's embrace when he starts humming an old, familiar tune, lulling Jongin into a state of nostalgia. It has always been like this when they were younger – Luhan would always sneak into bed with Jongin, comforting him with a lullaby whenever he senses Jongin's fear of the battle priests, or of the magnitude of his own powers. "The dead," Jongin croaks, and the momentary pause in Luhan's actions doesn't go unnoticed. He relishes in the way he's able to hear Luhan's heart beating a little faster, but he doesn't raise his gaze to look into Luhan's eyes. "Their anger is so thick in the air that I can taste it on my tongue. It's bitter. Revolting."

Luhan's warm lips are pressed against his temple moments later. "Ignore them," he says, quiet but imperious. "You rule over them. They can't hurt you."

Jongin licks his lips and swallows. "I know, but."

"But what?" Luhan asks, and Jongin suddenly finds himself unable to remember what he had wanted to say when Luhan's lips make a trail down to his throat and licks at the protrusion of his Adam's apple.

In the end, he gives up resisting against Luhan's advances, and finds himself allowing Luhan to push him onto the bed and peel his clothes off for him, baring himself for Luhan to take. Luhan always knows how to make things better, after all.

Doesn't he?

 

╫

Berlin's resurrection serves as a trigger for a huge wave of newfound support for the Guardians of EXO. There are requests from all over Earth pouring in months down the line, from the more powerful nations on the planet, for the Guardians to set foot on their land and create another miracle like what they had done to Berlin. In return, they'd willingly give up their reign on their nation, allowing the Guardians to rule over their lands as their new Lords. It's an offer much too enticing for any of them to say no, and the Guardians think it's a fair enough deal to help these humans out. It allows them to gain control over the planet much faster, anyway.

Xi'an, Incheon, Kyoto, Toronto, and Los Angeles are the first of cities to get a complete transformation, causing large droves of the human population to flock to them in hopes of finding a new chance of surviving this living hell on Earth. Jongin finds it intriguing, how these humans claim to be in this suffering together until the planet finally falls apart, but are quick to rescind on their words the moment a more promising future presents itself to them. Luhan's social experiment is more than enough to prove that fact, when these humans begin fighting amongst one another in order to gain access to these prestigious localities, the moment the Guardians announced that these cities will only house a fixed amount of citizens. The amount of bloodshed that occur outside the vicinity of these cities are more than enough to contribute to the darkness surrounding Planet Earth, something which Jongin isn't sure if he should be glad for.

Regardless, Jongin slowly detaches his emotions from the sight of human suffering. Sehun's words to him all those months ago were right – the humans are the ones who should be blamed for bringing this upon themselves. If they had better control over their greed and thirst for a life where they could live comfortably without having to work at all, none of this would have happened, and Earth's resources would have been enough to last them for several more centuries. As things are, they've pushed the planet to the brink of exhaustion before its time is due, and there's nothing else the Guardians could have done to help them.

Jongin can't honestly say he feels sorry for them. Not anymore.

 

╫

"You seem awfully close with Luhan these days, Jongin." For someone who rarely even hangs around their base in Berlin, Baekhyun sure has a different way of extending his greetings. Jongin, who's in the middle of an attempt at reading human news through a device they call an iPad, looks up with his eyebrows raised.

"We have always been close." Jongin says as-a-matter-of-factly. "What are you talking about, Baekhyun?"

It's not a complete lie; Jongin has always been around Luhan for as long as he can remember. The battle priests have always put them together whenever they had to train, and they're supposed to be the leaders of the Guardians. The Oracle and the Shadow Master have always been inseparable – now in more ways than one, but no one needs to know that. Luhan has been a constant presence in Jongin's bed, warming Jongin up beneath the sheets when the darkness grows too suffocating for even Jongin to withstand, and Jongin can't say he's not happy with the arrangement.

_But._

Baekhyun doesn't seem as though he buys Jongin's words though, when he quirks a sceptical brow at Jongin as he hops onto the lone loveseat in the library and drapes himself across its velvety surface, in a way that Baekhyun knows will present him in the most desirable way possible. Jongin has seen Chanyeol lap it up like a true lovestruck puppy, and the sight of Chanyeol's head bobbing up and down between Baekhyun's spread legs is something which he will never admit to witnessing – but at least Jongin now knows that he and Luhan aren't the only Guardians who are messing around with each other in private.

"Really." Baekhyun states, decidedly unimpressed. His gaze is piercing when he shifts in his position a little and glances in Jongin's direction. "The vibe I'm getting from the both of you seems to state otherwise."

Jongin hopes Baekhyun doesn't notice the flush in his cheeks. Instead, in the most stable voice he can muster, Jongin says, "You're overthinking things, Baekhyun."

"Am I?" Baekhyun asks at the same time Luhan requests for Jongin to accompany him for the remainder of the day, and Jongin's cheeks grow impossibly warmer at the fear of being caught red-handed. Thankfully, it doesn't appear as though Baekhyun has been allowed to listen in on Luhan and Jongin's private conversation.

As naturally as he can manage, Jongin powers off the device and makes to stand, hoping that he doesn't look overeager. He's been waiting all week to spend some time with Luhan who grows ever busy, after all. "Yes, you are. Please, excuse me. I have some matters to attend to."

Baekhyun's relentless, though, when he continues to call out after Jongin even when Jongin has set a foot out of the library's doors. "Forget about Luhan, Jongin. He's out of your league. You're going to end up burnt if you keep playing with fire. Remember, Luhan plays with minds, whether he uses his powers or not."

Jongin swallows, and pretends as though he hasn't heard a word of what Baekhyun had just told him. He already knows that he can't possibly be worthy of Luhan's time, but he likes to think that he does, until the illusion is finally shattered.

 

╫

It takes one slip up for everything they've done to go up in flames.

They probably had it coming, but none of the Guardians have made enough mental preparation to face the inevitable, not when they're too wrapped up in basking over the attention and praises that the humans have steadily showered them with, over the years since they've first set foot on this dying planet. By then, there's absolutely no mistake that the Guardians are more than capable to resurrect Earth with their mysterious abilities, if only they were given the time and the opportunity to do so, and they've garnered enough support from the humans to drown out the non-believers. It made them fearless, bold, but above all, they've thrown their principles at the back of their minds.

It's on one gloomy evening when it happens. Half of the Guardians have gathered in the outskirts of a city which houses one of the last strongholds of the non-believers, putting their plans of eradicating the city – not unlike what they have done to Berlin before they've rebuilt it from ashes – into action. Chanyeol's the one who's leading the massacre alongside Yifan, considering the highly destructive nature of their abilities, while Sehun sets up the perfect scenario which will help spread the flames forth. They've done this a number of times while being well-hidden from view, and it's by nature of habit that they don't think there's a need for someone to be on the lookout, unleashing their abilities to wreak havoc upon Phoenix, the capital of Arizona.

Jongin's the first to notice that someone else is there with them – someone who hasn't been invited to their small party, whose presence is completely unwelcomed – in the orange glow from the dying flames of Chanyeol and Yifan's combined attacks. It starts with an uncomfortable crawl down the back of his neck, more so than before, considering Jongin's complete reluctance in witnessing such cruelty being committed by the hands of those he calls his brothers – Jongin still doesn't condone their actions, even after all these years, but has decided to turn a blind eye on their action, so as long he isn't forced to stay and watch. Then Jongin catches the sight of a shadow moving, but by the time he manages to figure out what's going on, the shadow has already melded completely into the darkness, and Jongin can't follow after the person even if he wants to.

Jongin mentions this to his fellow Guardians, whom all laugh it off and tell Jongin he's merely being paranoid, that no human would be insane enough to trudge all the way out to where they are, when the nights are so unpredictable and dangerous to begin with. It takes several more shoves and name-calling by Sehun for Jongin to clamp up completely, not bothered to fight it out with his stubborn friends who won't even listen.

Deep down, though, his worries continue to brew and gnaw at him, much like the shadows that edge closer and closer to consume him whole. Jongin can only hope that his friends' words ring true, that the ghosts have gotten the better of him and are tricking him into imagining things.

Sometimes, the more desperately you hope for something, the less likely it will come true.

 

╫

Word spreads like wildfire, not unlike Chanyeol's flames which have gone out of control, within the next week. It starts out as a tiny spark of whispered gossip, that the destruction of several notable cities are not the result of the freak weather which is grappling Earth as it spirals down the path of eventual doom, but the doing of the Guardians who are making it seem as though it's nature running its course. There aren't many who believe in such seemingly outrageous claims, until someone starts pushing all the Guardians identities into the limelight and doing a detailed comparison of their abilities and the nature of the disasters which have destroyed numerous cities across the planet, making postulations and reasoning out why the Guardians are able to calm these _disasters_ down without putting in much effort.

By the end of the week, almost every human on the planet are up in arms, outraged that the Guardians have played them for fools. Unfortunately for them, the Guardians are unperturbed by the sudden change in loyalties, because it's the humans who are at fault to have believed in something so fleeting to begin with.

The panic alarm only truly sounds when even the citizens of Berlin go against them, despite having lived so comfortably under their rule for so long. Luhan, though, remains completely calm despite the angry shouts of protest outside their castle's gates, as though he's seen this coming all along. He doesn't even lift his gaze from his teacup when the humans' leader barges in through the doors of the grand hall, maintaining the perfect picture of serenity even when the humans whip out dangerous-looking weapons from their coats. Jongin, who's been seated beside Luhan all this while, perks up in attention at the sight, fully poised to grab hold of Luhan and make a run for it at the slightest warning. Even if they've never been up against these human weapons before, Jongin isn't prepared to put both their lives in danger for a whimsical gamble.

 _Stand down_ , Luhan's mind reaches out for him and coaxes Jongin to relax his stance, just as the humans begin yelling at them. "We _trusted_ in you, Oracle, and this is how you betray our trust? By destroying cities behind our backs and taking credit for rebuilding them?"

A rare spark of irritation comes from Luhan, which makes Jongin's brows furrow in worry because Luhan has always been the most collected one out of them all. The air around him grows heavy with murdering intent, which Jongin is dead sure doesn't originate from the group of intruders standing before them.

The only indication that Luhan is a lot angrier than he lets on is the way his cup clatters jarringly against the saucer when he puts it down, causing the ceramic ware to chip. "I am under the impression that you, as the leader of the most powerful nation on Earth, have relinquished your reign to us. You effectively have no right to dictate what we should and should not have done." He says, annoyance simmering beneath calm intonation.

"You're committing _murder_ –" the man seethes again, and Jongin remembers why he has never bothered with learning his name. A leader should be responsible for the people who look up to them, not surrender everything so easily for the sake of their own comfort and wellbeing. It's a despicable act on its own, and it has effectively destroyed all forms of respect Jongin holds for the man. He is nothing but a coward – a coward whose voice can only be heard when his own welfare is at stake.

"And?" Luhan challenges back, quirking his brow ever so slightly. "Does it change anything at all, when you humans are already at the brink of extinction before we stepped in?"

"Despicable filth–"

At this point of time, Jongin can no longer contain his silence. No one speaks to Luhan in such a manner, especially not lowly humans like them. "We have sheltered you for so long with our abilities. Aren't you quick to denounce all that we've done to save your sorry existence from a premature death?"

There's stunned silence on the humans' part, because in all their meetings with Luhan, Jongin has never joined in on their conversation. He doesn't mind being viewed as Luhan's quiet companion, since it's better if they let their guard down around him. At least he'll hold the element of surprise, if it boils down to a fight.

The man's bodyguards don't seem to appreciate Jongin's meddling, because a resounding click reverberates through the hall when they pull on the hammer of their weapons, shouting _how dare you_ at the pair. That's when another presence fills Jongin's senses, the intent to cause harm almost rivalling Luhan's, and Jongin doesn't even have to turn around to know that Zitao has joined them at the top of the stairs.

The Time Guardian makes his irritation known with a low growl, and Jongin's sure Zitao has an angry glare to boot, because the humans take a tentative step backwards, the blood slowly draining from their faces. Zitao can appear rather menacing, after all. "I was wondering who was bold enough to cause such a ruckus and disturb my sleep." He says, evidently not happy that he's been woken up prematurely. "I should have known it was annoying bugs like you."

"Who are you calling bugs, you freaks?" One of them seems to have regained their bravado, and waves his gun threateningly at Zitao with a roar.

Zitao clicks his tongue disapprovingly at the show of defiance and snaps his fingers together, and in the next moment, the man who had shown his disrespect turns into fine dust and is carried away by the gentle breeze that sweeps through the castle. Neither Jongin nor Luhan bats an eyelash at the display, because they know it's part of Zitao's powers, to make someone age exponentially faster than they should in the matter of seconds, but it does cause the remaining two humans to yell in surprise and outrage.

"So," Zitao continues, and Jongin catches the look of disinterest on his face, "who's next?"

 

╫

News of the human leader's slaying spreads like wildfire through the lands the next day, considering how the Yifan, in his dragon form, had dropped the man's charred body in the middle of the busiest square of Berlin after Jongdae had managed to strike him down with one gigawatts' worth of highly-charged energy. It's meant to be a warning for the rest of the human population, telling them that the Guardians have been benevolent enough to not have wiped out the entire human race the moment they had set foot on Planet Earth with their powers, when the Guardians are more than capable of doing so. At this point of time, none of the Guardians care for their images anymore, being thoroughly sick of pretending in order to get the humans on their side.

 _If we can't win them over with kindness, then we shall rule over them with fear_ , Luhan had suggested after the killings of the three humans who had trespassed their castle, and for once Jongin finds himself relenting to an obvious act of violence. It has been far too long, and they have invested far too much effort in gathering the humans' trust, but it's evident that these humans are ungrateful lowlifes who want to reap all the benefits without having to put in any effort of maintaining them, only to turn an accusatory finger upon the Guardians at the slightest of slip-ups.

Even the most patient of persons will have their patience run thin, when Junmyeon surprises Jongin with a bold comment, "If they're not going to submit easily, then we'll just have to _make_ them bend". Jongin can't say he hadn't seen it coming, though, not when he's witnessed the gentility eroded from Junmyeon bit by slow bit, made worse by the backlash the Guardians have been receiving from humankind.

It's then that Jongin finally stops batting an eyelash at the massacre his brothers are unleashing upon the rest of the human populace on Planet Earth, agreeing wholeheartedly with Luhan's point of view. There isn't a point in being merciful to those who do not appreciate the things the Guardians have done for them, especially when these humans had been jumping at the first opportunity to move into the new settlements created from scratch by the Guardians.

In fact, Jongin even finds pleasure in watching his brothers calling upon their darkest, strongest powers as they wreak havoc across the planet. Even though they've had the opportunity of discovering the dark side of their powers back when they were on Planet EXO, the Guardians have never really found the necessity of calling upon them – forbidden from doing so, even. The sight of them being unleashed, though, is majestic.

There is Minseok, who calls upon an eternal winter in lands which have always enjoyed long stretches of summer, plunging the humans who inhabit these localities into sub-zero temperatures, even literally freezing the hearts of some who are bold enough to face up to him. Once upon a time, Jongin might have shuddered at the lack of emotions in Minseok's usually warm eyes, but looking at the beauty that is his frigid smirk, Jongin could probably get used to it in time.

Then there is Yifan, ever so prideful with his dragon form, swooping down villages and great cities and turning them into ruins within mere seconds with the fire that he spits out through his mouth. Jongin can see both the awe and the fear in the humans' faces – in awe, because dragons are supposedly mythical creatures in human terms (Jongin has spent his time poring through human literature out of boredom, and found their books on myths and legends the most interesting), and in fear, because they soon learn that it's the first and last time they'll ever witness one with their own eyes.

The state of destruction caused by Junmyeon is beautiful as it is terrifying, summoning up large bodies of water from thin air and sending them crashing down on low-lying villages, inundating houses to their roofs and drowning anyone who's unlucky enough to get into the way. Jongin has never failed to find himself holding his breath when the water crashes down to earth, at the way the molecules glisten under the sunlight and creating an explosion of colours. Junmyeon seems to share the same sentiments, if the way he smiles satisfactorily at the sight of a flooded village beneath him that sparkles under the sun is anything to go by.

Baekhyun is crueller in his methods, driving the humans insane with his illusions before drawing them into hot wires made of light whips, charring them whole before they even knew what hit them. Chanyeol is as majestic as Yifan is, with his flaming wings of amber and gold as he takes on his phoenix form, burning every single piece of land within his reach when he swoops down low towards the barren soil. He would even supercharge the fire with the power bestowed by Mama, rendering it virtually impossible to be put out by normal water, and would spread a hundred times faster than a normal fire would.

Jongdae, on the other hand, joins forces with Sehun, calling about a massive lightning storm that transitions into a tornado when Sehun decides to show off a little. The combination of their power tears through even the sturdiest of buildings, leaving nothing but debris and ruins of the land's former glory behind, sweeping away everything else in its path without a trace of pity. And the storm rages on for days, beating mercilessly down on the land until nothing is left, apart from puddles of water left to dry beneath the scorching sun when both Jongdae and Sehun have left the vicinity.

Kyungsoo, on the other hand, does the job cleanly, methodically, splitting vast lands right down the centre with a massive earthquake and allowing the lava from the Earth's core to spill onto the surface, melting everyone in its path right down to their bones, leaving no trace of its victims behind.

Zitao, as Jongin had witnessed back in the castle, humoured himself by manipulating the humans' aging mechanisms, accelerating their growth impossibly faster and watching as they turn from youth to middle-aged to old, before disappearing in a cloud of dust, skin and muscles and bones disintegrating from the heat generated by the rapid turnover of their cells. He doesn't even look at them, strolling through the streets with his eyes transfixed on a tablet he's managed to procure from somewhere, shoulders jerking from left to right then left again as he plays a rather violent game.

Yixing's involvement in this, is perhaps the most shocking out of the lot, and the kindness in his eyes that Jongin has grown familiar with is gone as he casts a healing dome around the lifeless bodies lying on the ground around him, bringing them back to life only to let the rest of their brothers kill these humans once again, in hundreds of different ways. It probably wouldn't be that terrible, if these humans were revived without a hint of their memories from before they had died the first time, but Jongin can see the fear in their eyes when they open them and recognise the Guardian standing before them, and blood-curdling screams would fill the skies before the Guardians could even call on their powers, only to end abruptly mere seconds later.

It doesn't even matter that the Priests have warned Yixing sternly against reviving the dead, because it would disrupt the delicate balance of the universe. None of them seem anywhere close to stopping with their actions, until they've purged the Earth of its inhabitants.

Then again, there is nothing more chillingly beautiful than Luhan as he leans forward against the balustrade of the balcony, expressions impassive and eyes stone cold as he watches the scene beneath him. To those who are less informed, it would seem as though Luhan's merely observing as the humans turn on each other, having been driven to insanity by the disasters happening all around them, and are trying to take each other out in a desperate battle of survival of the fittest. It's sickening, what they could do, plunging daggers and any sharp object they could find into the chest, the abdomen of another living human, before dragging the weapon across and displacing every internal organ that gets caught in their blades, leaving behind a river of blood flowing on the ground.

Jongin would have thought the same, if Luhan hadn't beckoned him over and wrapped his arms around Jongin from behind, resting his chin in the crook of Jongin's neck as he whispers, "How fragile is the human mind, to fall prey to my powers without the slightest ability to resist its pull?" Luhan's voice is sickly sweet, sticky in Jongin's ears, and he's evidently pleased with himself, if the way Luhan presses open-mouthed kisses to the skin of Jongin's neck is any indication of it.

 _And I am just as defenceless as they are, when it comes to you,_ Jongin thinks, as his body reacts to Luhan's touches and his kisses like it always has, his knees going weak at the way Luhan's making him feel. The sight of a man bashing the side of another woman's head in with a brick happening right at that moment, though, makes Jongin's stomach churn sickeningly. He immediately turns around and grabs Luhan by the front of his robes, smashing his lips against Luhan's spit-slicked ones to force the images away, and Luhan is pliant enough to let Jongin steer them back into the castle, his erection pressing against Jongin's groin.

Of course, Jongin doesn't forget to open up a void in the ground, sucking every last human being mutilating each other in the front lawn of their castle into it, and lets Luhan strip him bare, lips mapping every inch of Jongin's exposed skin as he loses himself to the moment.

 

╫

_The Tree of Life is wilting!_

Yixing's panicked words echo in his head as Jongin runs the rest of the way down the corridor, his skin icy cold and the tips of his fingers numb from the possible implication. When Jongin had appeared at the stables earlier that afternoon, having sensed that Yixing was there, he'd decided to take a break from all the destruction his brothers are unleashing upon the battered Earth to see how Yixing was doing. He can't possibly forget that panic-stricken face of Yixing's when the older boy had looked up, fingers shaking as he tries to heal the sapling of the Tree of Life to the best of his abilities.

And Jongin's stomach had lurched sickeningly, when he takes a brief look at the sapling and finds its leaves turning brown, when it had been a brilliant shade of jade green just a couple of days ago. The Tree of Life had been growing in an excruciatingly slow pace, before this, and it's something all of them knew of. They'd postulated that being far away from Mama's powers is affecting the Tree's growth, but yet it was still _growing_. They could be patient with it, and Yixing had taken on the task of tending to it on a daily basis, channelling his powers into the sapling in hopes that it will accelerate its growth.

But now–

His first instinct had been to inform Luhan, because Luhan _always_ knew what to do. He may not be the oldest of the lot – Minseok is – but he is certainly the wisest, owing to his status as the Oracle of Planet EXO. And it's with such thoughts that Jongin focuses on finding Luhan's aura, tracing him all the way to Baekhyun's room.

What greets him when Jongin barges in, though, has him frozen in his steps, jaw falling open in a mixture of surprise and horror. He'd sensed that Baekhyun was in the room with Luhan, that much was true, but Jongin had grossly misjudged the distance between their auras, because at this particular moment, Luhan's all draped over the loveseat with his legs spread wide, while Baekhyun's head is bobbing between them, taking Luhan's erection into his mouth. Luhan's fingers are in Baekhyun's hair, desperately finding purchase when Baekhyun hums around him – the way Jongin knows Luhan _loves_ it.

And Jongin's stomach absolutely _twists_ sickeningly when Baekhyun angles his head just then and unmistakably holds Jongin's shocked gaze, the smirk spreading on his precum-slicked lips impossible to miss. He positively wants to throw up when Baekhyun nuzzles his cheek against Luhan's cock before dipping his tongue into Luhan's slit once again, pulling a loud moan from Luhan who arches beautifully off the loveseat.

Luhan was supposed to belong to Jongin, and Jongin _alone_. His heart tells him to march right into the room and yank Baekhyun away from _his_ Luhan, brotherhood be damned, because deep down, he knows that their brotherhood code has been broken from the moment Jongin had allowed Luhan to make sweet love to him. But his feet seem to have a mind of their own, and Jongin soon finds himself turning around in his steps, before dashing down the hallway from where he had just come from mere minutes ago, the sound of the door to Baekhyun's room slamming shut behind him echoing in the vast space of their palatial mansion.

Jongin doesn't know how long he's been running, doesn't know why he can't activate his powers, but he surmises that it must be because his mind is in a chaotic state. Jongin has never been good at utilising his powers when he can't stay focused, unlike Luhan who can call upon his abilities even in a subconscious state, and it's one of those things that Jongin absolutely envies about Luhan. It feels like an eternity has passed him by before Jongin finally arrives at his room, and he immediately shuts the door behind him, keeping his weight against the door as he slides to the ground, his legs finally giving way beneath him. A neverending numbness stretches out in his mind as he stares ahead, still trying to make sense of what he'd seen earlier, but all it does is to make his heart ache even more when he remembers how Baekhyun's slender fingers had been splayed against Luhan's abdomen and his bare thighs.

He jumps when someone knocks against his door in rapid succession, firm but not aggressive, and Jongin's heart constricts yet again when he feels Luhan's aura separated from his by the wood, wondering how he'd missed Luhan approaching. And, against his better judgement, Jongin finds himself rising to his feet, hand reaching forward to turn the knob.

Luhan's surprisingly panic-stricken when the door opens up, and Jongin doesn't know what to think when Luhan rushes forth to pull Jongin into his embrace. He absently takes note that Luhan's hair is still mussed up from whatever he's been doing with Baekhyun earlier, his lips well-kissed and swollen, and Jongin has to force his gaze away from Luhan. It hurts too much.

"Whatever you saw – it's not true." Luhan whispers into his ear, fingers digging into the fabric of Jongin's loose cotton shirt. Jongin swallows.

"I will never mistake your moan for any other sound, even if I wanted to, Luhan." Jongin tells him, voice coming out a lot flatter than he'd initially intended it to. But it's true; he's spent an obscene amount of time in Luhan's bed, between his sheets, sweaty skin sliding across skin, mouths hot as they latch against each other's necks. There's no way he could forget the sinful sounds Luhan makes when they make love.

At least, he derives some sort of twisted satisfaction when Luhan flinches at his words.

"I'm sorry. I'm _sorry_ , Jongin." Luhan says again, and Jongin's almost tempted to give in and forgive Luhan when he hears how broken Luhan actually is. "Baekhyun forced me into doing this. I care for _you_ , Jongin, not Baekhyun. _Never_ Baekhyun. You know that, don't you?"

Luhan's words are easy to disregard, to shut them away as though he hadn't heard them at all, but then Luhan brushes gentle fingers against his cheek and all his resolve turns into mush, leaning in to savour the warmth of Luhan's touch on his skin.

Sometimes, Jongin hates that Luhan can see through him this easily, even though Luhan shouldn't be able to read into Jongin's mind. He doesn't understand why he's completely defenceless when it comes to Luhan, almost as though he's nothing but a mere marionette in Luhan's hands, dancing for the sake of pleasing his puppeteer. And he can't figure out if Luhan's telling the truth when he says he's not utilising his powers on Jongin. One person should not be affecting him this much.

"Can I trust you?" Jongin croaks in the end, looking down at Luhan through his lashes, and he can see nothing but unending sincerity in the way Luhan's gazing back at him.

"Have you never been able to?" Luhan leans in, and Jongin's eyelids automatically flutter shut to welcome the kiss that Luhan's offering to him. He tries not to think about how he can taste Baekhyun on Luhan's lips, on his tongue, and he forces the nauseating feelings down.

It's only when they've pulled apart to catch their breaths does Jongin remember with a start why he'd went in search for Luhan in the first places, and his fingers curl into the front of Luhan's dishevelled robes. "Yixing tells me that the Tree of Life is wilting," he informs Luhan, but the expected tensing of muscles doesn't come.

Instead, Luhan says this: "I don't like seeing you being close to Yixing, of all people," and when Jongin frowns in confusion, Luhan adds, "If you want to have anything to do with me at all, then you will have to stay away from Yixing. Can you promise me that much?"

"But the Tree–" Jongin starts again, because there are more pressing matters that require their attention, and he can't possibly leave Yixing to deal with it on his own. At the very least, when they put their heads together, they might actually be able to arrive at a solution faster, and at this rate, it had better be sooner rather than later, or they might lose the Tree eventually, their powers going along with it considering the fact that the Tree is their only link to Mama and all that Planet EXO was.

"Worry not about the Tree. I will deal with Yixing directly about the matter, and all you have to do is to stay by my side." Luhan cuts him off with a gentle press of his finger against Jongin's lips, and the light in his eyes is almost smouldering. The blood rushes down south into Jongin's cock when Luhan spreads his legs a little and rubs his groin against Jongin's thigh, making it known that he's still hard and heavy beneath his robes, that he's giving Jongin the chance to finish him off.

And Jongin hates that he's horribly tempted to take Luhan up on his veiled request, but he gives in, anyway.

He's never been good at refusing Luhan, after all.

 

╫

Later that evening, once Luhan's done mapping Jongin's body with his lips and tongue, Jongin finds himself padding down the halls barefooted, chewing on his bottom lip as he ponders about what Luhan had said earlier.

_If you want anything to do with me at all, then you will have to stay away from Yixing._

Even though he's given his word to Luhan, part of Jongin's heart still isn't quite comfortable with the idea of keeping his distance from Yixing, especially when Luhan refuses to let him know the rationale behind his request. He's been trying to look at several different perspectives, to no avail. The most plausible explanation he could come up with was that his powers over the Shadows is directly affecting Yixing's powers over Healing and all things Light, rendering Yixing unable to speed up the growth process of the Tree. Jongin pins that idea down in his mind and continuously works hard to convince himself that _this must be it_ , even if his heart continuously tries to tell him otherwise.

He comes to a complete stop when Baekhyun steps out from the shadows of a large pillar, something which is rather uncharacteristic of the man, considering his affinity to light. In the pale moonlight, Baekhyun's smirk is almost mocking as he crosses his arms before his chest and leans against the pillar to regard Jongin. "You really trust Luhan that much, don't you?"

Baekhyun's words ignite a rare spark of irritation within Jongin, mainly because he doesn't understand why Baekhyun keeps trying to stand between him and Luhan. "What is it to you?"

The man merely shrugs, nonchalant. "Luhan plays with minds – whether he uses his powers or not. I told you that. We're all puppets for his amusement."

Again, Jongin snarls at Baekhyun. "He's not like that, Baekhyun. The history books said–"

"I _know_ what the history books _said_ , Jongin." Baekhyun cuts him off, and Jongin isn't quite sure if the cruel lilt of Baekhyun's smile is really there, or if it's only a part of his imagination. "But let me tell you this: the battle priests were wrong; Luhan _can_ affect our minds if he wants to, regardless of what the history books might say about his lineage of Seers. Then again, it's up to you to believe it."

"I don't," Jongin says with conviction, even as its edges slowly chip away within him. Of course Jongin has thought about it more than once, wondering about his strong attraction towards Luhan, but each time he attributes it to love more than anything else. Perhaps a small part within him wants to believe that Luhan will never utilise his powers on Jongin, and Jongin holds on steadfastly to that belief. And to strengthen that conviction, Jongin repeats himself in a louder, surer voice. "I don't believe in that."

Baekhyun's smirk only grows wider. "Continue telling yourself that. He's done this to Junmyeon, he can do it to you, too."

Even though he puts in his conscious effort, Jongin can't seem to stop himself from thinking about Baekhyun's words, over and over and over again in that dark hallway, long after Baekhyun has retired to his own room. And each time he does think about it, the more Jongin finds himself believing in Baekhyun a little more.

Jongin wonders if he can loathe himself any more than he does now.

 

╫

The next few days passes by in a complete haze for Jongin. He actually listens to Luhan and makes an effort to stay away from Yixing to the best of his abilities, which says a lot because Jongin has never spent a day without seeing Yixing at the stables ever since they'd come to Planet Earth. There are times when Jongin would accidentally teleport himself to the stables, only to disappear in a wisp of smoke as soon as he realises what he's done, before Yixing even notices that he's there.

He knows he can't run forever, though. Yixing may be absentminded half the time, but he will catch on to things eventually. Jongin's protracted absence is one of those things which Yixing will definitely come to realise soon enough, and Jongin honestly isn't surprised when someone suddenly makes a grab for his hand to stop him in his tracks one evening.

What _does_ surprise Jongin, though, is the angry expression Yixing's sporting when he turns around, because Yixing is _never_ angry with anyone, no matter how much they annoy him. Yixing would normally take a deep breath, squeeze his eyes shut for several minutes, then smile as though nothing had happened at all.

Perhaps Planet Earth is toxic to all of them, in more ways than one.

"Are you avoiding me intentionally? Why?" Yixing snarls, and the intensity of his gaze burns. Jongin wants to look away, but he knows that if he does, Yixing will definitely know something's going on.

"I'm not avoiding you, Xing." Jongin therefore says, ignoring the way his heart twitches guiltily. He's had a lot of practice, keeping a straight face even when he's essentially killing another living being with his own hands. "I've just been busy helping the rest of them with–" Pause. _Murder_ , a voice at the back of his mind whispers, a part of the shadows that lurk in the recesses of his thoughts. The word tastes revolting on his tongue, so he doesn't say it. "–things. You know how they are."

Yixing narrows his eyes at Jongin, a sure sign that he doesn't buy Jongin's explanation. "Your presence has always been lingering close to the castle. Do you think I couldn't sense you?"

Jongin's eager not to give in. Yixing doesn't have to know the truth; it'll probably hurt him more than having Jongin avoiding any form of contact with him without letting him know _why_. "You know how it is with teleportation. One second I'm here, and another second I'm not. Besides, our powers are getting more unstable by the day. You know that. You know _why_. The Tree–"

"It's Luhan, isn't it?" Yixing cuts him off impatiently, and the name has Jongin freezing in his position. The split second of hesitation is exactly what Yixing needs to confirm his suspicions, and Jongin doesn't even have the opportunity to refute his vague accusation, when Yixing immediately tears away from Jongin and storms in the direction of Luhan's room. The expressions on Yixing's face is akin to the tempest which Sehun had called upon, dark and stormy and outright livid.

Yixing is surprisingly quick on his feet, and Jongin struggles to even keep up, considering how he's already used to letting wisps of smoke swallow him up before spitting him out in some other location instead of utilising his feet. Yixing doesn't even bother knocking, barging right past the heavy mahogany double doors of Luhan's room and yelling for Luhan to come out.

Ashamed of being found out this easily, Jongin hesitates at the door, not wanting to see for himself the dark expression he just _knows_ Luhan will be sporting when he finds an equally fuming Yixing. Luhan's mood is ever so easily affected by those around him, strong emotions in particular. An angry Luhan isn't something Jongin would like to witness, ever. He already knows how it's like, when the negative energy submerges the room, and his own power will feed on that in turn. Jongin absolutely hates it when his powers threaten to take over his consciousness; he's not strong enough to overcome the temptation to let himself go completely.

Above all, Jongin dreads to imagine what would happen if he ever lost control over his own abilities. The catastrophe on Planet EXO after Chanyeol's deadly mistake – one which saw an entire town burnt to the ground – is still fresh on Jongin's mind, and he's vowed never to let the same thing happen ever again.

"Why, Yixing, how rare of you to approach me on your own accord." Luhan's smug voice fills the room moments later, making Jongin perk up in attention. There's a bit of cruelty embedded in his words, too, and Jongin really hopes he's imagining things.

Yixing actually scoffs at the greeting, sending more unpleasant shudders down Jongin's spine. "Don't even make it sound like we're on good terms at all, Luhan. You know I'd never willingly seek you out if I had the choice."

That's when the realisation strikes Jongin hard. Indeed, he's never actually seen Luhan and Yixing speaking to each other, around the time when the destruction of Planet EXO had begun. Even when they were in the same room, Luhan would have his keen eyes on Yixing, while the latter would steadfastly, pointedly ignore the Oracle. Jongin has never understood the peculiar atmosphere between them, but he guesses he's about to find out today.

There's the rustling of fabric, and Jongin imagines that Luhan must have parked himself on the velvet chaise lounge situated in the middle of the room as he regards Yixing. "Are you really still bitter over the fact that Junmyeon chose me over you, my dear _brother_? It's been _years_. You should really move on."

This time, the mocking intonation Luhan's employing doesn't go unnoticed by Jongin, and it makes his stomach churn unpleasantly. All this while, he had thought that his brothers were in good terms with each other. Wrapped up in his admiration for Luhan, he has never noticed the tension between them, especially not between Yixing and Luhan. Was that why Yixing would never spend his time alone with Junmyeon, too? Because they had a falling out?

"It's always like this with you, isn't it?" Yixing spits, pure venom lacing his words now. Kind, warmhearted Yixing is shooting poisoned arrows from his mouth. "Your jealousy will always cloud your judgement, and you would always want the things I have. It's like that when I was with Junmyeon, and it's still like that now when I've grown close to Jongin."

Luhan laughs, the sound cold and mirthless to Jongin's ear. If Luhan has noticed that Jongin's standing on the other side of the door, he doesn't comment. "You must be mistaken. I can't do anything about it if Junmyeon had suddenly decided he was more interested in me instead of you–"

" _Don't fuck around with me_!" Yixing lashes out, making Jongin take yet another step away from the door. He's really never heard Yixing being so angry before. "You _used_ your powers on Junmyeon and controlled his mind, when you know very well you shouldn't! Do you really think I have no idea about what you've been doing? Do you think I'm clueless about the loopholes in the restrictions surrounding our abilities?"

Luhan doesn't seem bothered by the accusation being thrown in his face when he speaks next. "Well, I always knew that you weren't as clueless as you portray yourself to be." He comments, tone light, and Jongin's insides twist again. Luhan isn't refuting Yixing's words at all. "So what else do you expect me to do? At least I saved you the pain of having Jongin leave you when you're already too deep in, before you've gotten much too involved with him. Isn't this better than crying yourself to sleep night after night after night, the way you did when Junmyeon left you?"

There's a tense moment of silence, before Yixing hisses in disgust again. "You're inhumane."

Jongin jolts in surprise when Yixing storms out of the room again, and when he locks his gaze with Yixing, all he can see is hurt and disappointment in Yixing's usually beautiful brown eyes.

This time, Jongin doesn't even bother entering Luhan's room even when he can sense the anger roiling in the atmosphere coming from within. Instead, the air around him shifts and cracks as he calls upon his powers, his heart begging desperately for his body to be taken to a faraway place where Luhan can't reach him in the meantime when he senses the man growing close.

Luhan doesn't even try contacting him through their mind channel.

 

╫

Rage is a lethal emotion, especially for people who wield great abilities like the Guardians. Jongin knows that, yet he can't stop himself from ridding himself of the pent up frustrations bottled within him by creating destruction around him with every step that he takes.

 _Do not ever harm the life of another, or the darkness that surrounds you will only continue to grow._ The battle priests have warned him of it, all those years ago when they had just started to train Jongin in the art of controlling his powers, having recognised right from the start that he's the strongest Shadow Master Planet EXO has ever seen. For someone whose powers thrived on darkness, there's virtually no boundaries to the expansion of his abilities. Jongin is well aware of that fact, knows how dangerous it is to keep his limits unchecked. He supposes the most frightening thing of this all is that he _doesn't care_.

Nothing seems to matter to him any longer, not after he's heard the conversation between Luhan and Yixing a day ago. He'd _trusted_ Luhan unconditionally, thinking that Luhan's feelings for him were real, that Jongin himself is, _was_ in love with Luhan. Jongin had, on multiple accounts, declared Baekhyun's claims that Luhan wouldn't hesitate to use his powers on his own brothers as nonsense, but right now, Jongin isn't so sure anymore.

He still wishes desperately for Luhan to deny everything – Jongin's mind channel is wide open for Luhan to enter if he so wishes, every single thought on display – even now, but the only thing that's coming from Luhan's side is complete, unnerving silence.

Furious, Jongin sends out yet another shadow army to annihilate the newest town he's teleported to, watching in satisfaction as dark portals open up beneath everyone's feet and swallowing them up. On other times, he would take things into his own hands and entertain himself by manipulating the shadows of these humans and letting their shadows turn on them, and it's precisely with this particular old man that Jongin decides to fool around a little, controlling his movements and dragging him to an alley to pick up a jagged piece of metal from the ground. The man doesn't seem to be the least bit afraid like the rest of the humans had been, not even when it's clear what Jongin intends to have him do. The man appears almost defiant, even, and it makes the corner of Jongin's lips curl up almost cruelly.

Nevertheless, just as Jongin makes the man slide the piece of rusted metal across the expanse of his bare chest and drawing blood, the man yells something which has Jongin freezing in his movements. "Just because you have freakish powers, it doesn't mean you can sit and play God!"

The impact hits him so hard that Jongin loses control over his abilities for a moment, accelerating the movements of the man's shadow and letting it drive the metal bar right through the man's chest, and Jongin's mind still reels even when the man's collapsing to the ground, drowning in his own pool of blood.

All those years ago, when Jongin was told that he was going to be a Guardian of Planet EXO, he'd been thrilled, having learnt that the Guardians are meant to be protectors of the planet, of its people. Yet right now, when he thinks back on the things he and the rest of the Guardians have done thus far, Jongin can see nothing good in them. All they've been doing is to torture humans who only craved to survive, giving them false hope before sinking them into the deepest pit of despair yet again. The initial plan was to cause a little of havoc and cleaning them up right after, just enough to get the humans to trust them and let them in. Not to hurt. Not to torment. Not to _kill_.

That's when something the battle priests had once told him comes to mind, and Jongin feels utterly sick to the core by his very actions.

_You have been bestowed with these powers by Mama because you are trusted to utilise them responsibly. Having powers do not mean that you can play God; they are there for you to help others, no to hurt. And, Protectors forbid, if you ever succumb to the darkness that creeps up to you, you will be consumed by your own powers, and doom will be the only end you wiil meet._

It doesn't help that he suddenly remembers that the Tree of Life is supposed to thrive only on purity. They are anything _but_ pure with their actions, and somewhere along the line, the rest of his friends seem to have forgotten about their initial pact, while the thirst to rule individually only grows stronger with each passing day.

Jongin closes his eyes and tries to remember the faces of his fellow brothers when they go in for the kill, and is struck with the horrifying realisation that the other Guardians are committing these acts with hardly a flicker of remorse, causing him to dry heave onto the ground, unable to withstand the violent churning of his stomach any longer.

When the initial wave of sickness passes him by, Jongin makes his decision in a heartbeat.

He will have to do this, for Mama's sake.

 

╫

Unsurprisingly, Luhan's the first to greet him when Jongin returns to the castle, but he can no longer find it in himself to trust in the concerned look Luhan's putting up for him. Luhan _knew_ Jongin had been listening in on his conversation with Yixing, yet he has made no move to explain himself, to call Yixing a liar.

"Jongin, what's wrong? Where have you been?" He asks, making a grab for Jongin's wrist. Jongin lets him, resisting the urge to shrug Luhan off. He knows it's a farfetched idea, but there's something else Jongin would like to try.

"Luhan, let's put a stop to this. The killing, the purging. Let's stop it." Jongin says in a quiet voice, and he surprises himself by sounding a lot calmer than he'd expected himself to be.

Then again, he's never seen Luhan's expressions change from stunned to absolutely incredulous in the matter of seconds, and Luhan barks out a disbelieving laugh when his mind finally catches up with the implication behind Jongin's words. "Why now? Why _at all_? We've done so much. We can't possibly stop right now, when we're on the verge of succeeding."

"We've done _too much_!" Jongin lashes out, but Luhan doesn't even seem affected by Jongin's rare outburst. "The Tree is dying because we've been tapping into the dark side of our powers. If we stop now, then the Tree might have a chance at surviving–"

Luhan cuts him off with a mocking laughter, his expressions cold and emotionless as he regards Jongin with a sharp gaze. "Clueless, naïve Jongin. Do you really think that stopping now will reverse the damage that has been done? Silly, _silly_ Jongin."

Jongin narrows his eyes in confusion at Luhan. "What do you mean by that?"

Luhan merely pats his cheeks in a condescending manner. "Mama has abandoned us, weeks before Planet EXO met its destruction. I've been trying to establish contact with her, countless times, but all I get is silence. She _abandoned_ us, Jongin! That is why we haven't been able to regrow the Tree. There's nothing for it to connect us to!"

The revelation has Jongin's knees buckling beneath his weight, the shock much too great for him to handle. If Mama was indeed gone, then what have they been fighting for all this while? "That's impossible. You're lying."

"Am I?" Luhan scoffs, and he sounds just as empty as Jongin feels. " _This_ is our world now, Jongin. This is our planet to rule. Why can't you see that?"

"We are born and raised to be _protectors_ , not killers, Luhan." Jongin tries again, because if there's still a shred of hope that Luhan would listen to reason, then he will fight for that chance. "You have the power to stop this; everyone else would listen to you."

There's a long moment of silence, then– "No."

Jongin blinks at Luhan in confusion for a long moment, and Luhan amends himself when he senses that. "I am not stopping when we're so close to the end. Neither are the rest of them."

Luhan's words help Jongin tremendously in making his next decision, the initial hesitation gone without a trace. He steels himself and faces Luhan, telling him, "Then you leave me with no choice."

And then Jongin's gone before Luhan can even respond.

 

╫

Never in his wildest of dreams and darkest of nightmares did Jongin expect this would happen.

Back when he was still training to gain control over his abilities on Planet EXO, the battle priests had told him one thing which has stuck with him even until now: _you are the beginning and the end_. In the beginning, Jongin had been much too young to understand the implications behind the battle priests' words, but it didn't stop him from scouring the archives and the libraries, determined to find out exactly what is it the battle priests had wanted to tell him. They never gave any of them direct information, preferring instead to drop them riddles and allowing the Guardians to solve them on their own.

And read Jongin did, until he had stumbled upon a very old inscription bearing information on the powers of his lineage which no one else would know of, unless they knew what they were looking for. According to the inscription, Shadow Masters possess the ability of transporting numerous people along with him into the strongest void ever known to EXOnians, a void which would spell their destruction. There was only one instance where it had been activated, where the Guardians of Planet EXO back then had gone berserk and had almost driven their planet to an early death. The Shadow Master had taken it upon himself to rid the planet of the threat, only to never be seen of again.

Right now, even with Luhan's presence knocking insistently on the recesses of his conscious mind, Jongin knows that he _must_ do this. They have all lost their fair judgement, as well as their link to Mama, rendering the Guardians an extremely dangerous entity to the rest of the universe.

He doesn't doubt that Luhan has caught on to his intentions and has alerted the rest of their brothers of what Jongin is about to do, if their ever decreasing distance from him is anything to go by, but Jongin refuses to be distracted by them. Instead, he focuses his attention on harnessing a long forgotten power, practiced but never used, and draws it out of his subconscious mind.

With their destruction in mind, Jongin continues to cultivate that force, and the moment Luhan manages to locate him, Jongin unleashes that power and forcefully drags all of his brothers along with him, the air around him cracking loudly before tendrils of smoke swallow them whole.

In the void, he can see the anger on his brothers' faces, and resignation on Yixing's when they're reunited. Livid words are probably pouring out of their rapidly moving mouths, but not one sound is heard when there's no air to carry them through. Feeling the pressure around him rise exponentially and threatening to crush their existence as a whole, Jongin merely smiles and shuts his eyes.

It's time to let this die.


End file.
